Stars Blackballed After Their Big Hits Speak Out

Mo’Nique

Mo’Nique says that Sometimes being blackballed is about standing up for yourself and refusing to be underestimated or devalued by less-than-Oscar-wothy roles. She told CNN Tonight,

“It wasn’t that I was blackballed like Mr. Daniels said… the phone was ringing and the scripts were coming but the offers that were associated with them made me say ‘I can’t accept that. If we continue to accept these low offers, how do we make a change?”

Octavia Spencer

Octavia says that after she won her 2012 Oscar for The Help, there was nowhere to go but down:

“There are so few roles out there. And even if it is a film that could be led by a black actress, how many times is that film going to get funded? Let’s just be real. It’s a business thing, and you have to change the mindset of people around here.

The roles I’m being offered in film are too small to sink your teeth into, and I thought it was time to be able to live with a character at inception and travel with her to fruition, and allow myself to evolve as an actress.”

Paula Jai Parker

Did Paula Jai Parker’s role in Idlewild get her blackballed?

Paula says being ousted from Hollywood roles after winding up on the wrong side of cliques on set got her pushed out of a lot of roles:

“Hollywood is very cliquish. Working is about having relationships. It’s more about who you know, who you don’t know, who you’re friends with, who you’re not friends with. Me being out of the loop kept me from being able to work.

You can ask anyone on the Idlewild set as far as the executives go there were phone calls made concerning me and that movie. After that particular movie, you didn’t see me very much.”

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Dianne Wiest

Two Oscars under her belt and an eviction notice?

Dianne Wiest has been a fan favorite since her roles in Edward Scissorhands and The Lost Boys.

But Dianne says that despite winning two Oscars, typecasting as the “nice mom” pushed her out of consideration from leading roles worthy of a double Oscar winner. And when the roles dried up completely, she was forced to move out of her home.

Steven Yeun

After his starring role in The Walking Dead, actor Steven Yeun says, “People ask, ‘So, how are the roles now? You must be getting so many.’”

But Steve says it’s still very hard out there as a minority seeking leading roles:

“It’s like, I don’t know if you know, but I’m Asian still. It’s not a complaint, that’s just how it is now, and I have to forge my own path through it and see that through. I think that if I had not been Asian, I probably would have a whole plethora of roles, at least to audition for, but it’s just not what has been written.

Come on, Hollywood, broaden your minds!”

Patricia Rae

Actress Patricia Rae says that after starring in movies like Maria Full of Grace and The Big Wedding, her refusal to step back down into stereotypical roles playing the help got her effectively blackballed:

“I see it all the time on the breakdowns (casting notices), it’s like if you are Latino, you have to get naked. I studied at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute, I have done off-Broadway shows. I don’t want to play a cleaning lady.”

SEE ALSO

• Nia Long Isn’t Happy With How The Boston Celtics Handled Ime Udoka’s Cheating Scandal
• New TLC Show ‘Seeking Brother Husband’ Showcases Polyandrous Sisters
• Adonis Dfetty Immediately Stirs Up Drama And Fist Fights In ‘Bad Boys Texas’ House
• Georgia Judge Prohibits Tiffany Haddish From Drinking And Ingesting Illegal Substances
• Lenny Kravitz Maintains Rock God Status With Bubble Bath Thirst Trap And A Phone Call From Denzel Washington During Performance

Barkhad Abdi

Barkhad Abdi says he thought he was well on his way to becoming a breakout star when he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his unforgettable role in Captain Phillips.

But Barkhad says that no one in Hollywood has come calling and now – after being passed over for a number of parts — he’s back in Minneapolis working in his brother’s cell phone shop.

Janet Jackson

Janet says it wasn’t a hit but a slip that got her blackballed from the charts.
After her infamous nip slip at Super Bowl XXXVIII, Janet Jackson says that despite five multi-platinum albums, radio stations refused to play her music after the wardrobe malfunction. After they turned their backs, her albums struggled to even make gold.

Gwyneth Paltrow

Did Gwyn’s blog get her blackballed?

Despite winning Best Actress for Shakespeare in Love, Gwyn has struggled to find leading roles lately. Why? Several insiders have said that her cold, holier-than-thou reputation – spurred in part by GOOP (and rumors that she refuses to speak to “competition” Scarlett Johansson on set – have cut her out of consideration for more Oscar-worthy roles.

Sharon Stone

Once upon a time, Sharon Stone was one of Hollywood’s biggest sex symbols.

Unfortunately, sex only sells for so long. After her starring role in Basic Instinct and her ‘96 nomination for best supporting actress in Casino, Sharon Stone says that the meaty roles all but dried up.

When she tried pushing for meatier roles? Sharon was labeled as a “diva” and struggled to even get bit parts.

Jessica Chastain

Does reaching a certain age mean that Hollywood closes its doors?

Actress Jessica Chastain says that roles for older actresses quickly dry up:

“There are some incredible actresses in their 50s and 60s who are not getting opportunities in films, and for someone to say there are plenty of roles for women that age is someone not going to the movie theater.”

SEE ALSO

• Nia Long Isn’t Happy With How The Boston Celtics Handled Ime Udoka’s Cheating Scandal
• New TLC Show ‘Seeking Brother Husband’ Showcases Polyandrous Sisters
• Adonis Dfetty Immediately Stirs Up Drama And Fist Fights In ‘Bad Boys Texas’ House
• Georgia Judge Prohibits Tiffany Haddish From Drinking And Ingesting Illegal Substances
• Lenny Kravitz Maintains Rock God Status With Bubble Bath Thirst Trap And A Phone Call From Denzel Washington During Performance

Russell Crowe

Where has Russell Crowe been lately?

The Gladiator star says he’s been struggling to find work after his 2002 Oscar nomination because he’s only offered age-inappropriate roles:

Russel says journalists always ask him, “’Why don’t you do another Gladiator, you know, everybody loved that.’ ‘I’m too old. I can’t be the gladiator anymore. I’m playing parts that are appropriate to my age.”

Russell went on to say that actors like George Clooney are “selling out” by taking roles that aren’t righ for them.

Cuba Gooding Jr.

Where has Cuba Gooding Jr. been since his 1997 Best Supporting Actor Oscar for Jerry Maguire? Struggling to find leading man roles in anything but straight-to-DVD action and comedy roles.

Edward Norton

Extenuating circumstances aren’t the only reasons stars are blackballed from Hollywood sets. Insiders say that despite his 1997 Oscar Nomination for Primal Fear, Edward Norton struggles to find leading roles.

Why? Some say it’s his attitude that got him replaced by Mark Ruffalo as The Hulk and passed over for more-agreeable leading men in Hollywood’s major roles.